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Catholic Meditation – Seventh Sunday of Easter – Year A.

Martin Jumbam

The Universal Church celebrates Sunday, May 28, 2017 as the Seventh Sunday of Easter – Year A. It is also the 51st World Communications Day, the day Catholics are asked to reflect on the necessity of fulfilling the command of Jesus to preach the Good News of the Gospel to the whole world. Pope Francis has chosen as title for this day, “’Fear not, for I am with you’ (Is 43:5: Communicating Hope and Trust in our Time.”

In his message, the Holy Father urges Catholic communicators to use the media in a positive way so that, “By the power of the Holy Spirit we can be witnesses and communicators of a new and redeemed humanity even to the ends of the earth.” Remember in your prayers this day those of us who work in the communication ministry of the Church, that we may be men and women who use the Catholic media to build rather than to destroy.

In the entrance antiphon of this day’s Mass, we pray: “Lord, hear my voice when I call to you. My heart has prompted me to seek your face; I seek it, Lord; do not hide from me, alleluia.” This is the last Sunday before Pentecost and the readings present us with an essential aspect of the Church’s life, that is, confident prayer that God’s Spirit may come upon his Church, and openness to that same Spirit. This is seen in the first reading in the apostolic assembly in the Upper Room that includes Mary, the Mother of our Lord. In the second reading, Saint Peter tells us that if we are persecuted, it is because we carry Christ’s name. Rather than seeing this as a burden, we should view it as a thing of joy and thanksgiving. The Gospel reading is from Saint John’s Priestly Prayer in which Jesus consecrates his sacrificial death to his Father. With this prayer, Our Lord also consecrates his disciples and the Church they form.

As we reflect on the readings of this day, let us pray for the grace to receive the Holy Spirit into our hearts, minds and souls so we can be true bearers of Christ’s love into our families, work places and society as a whole.

First Reading: Acts 1: 12-14.

When the apostles had come together, they asked Jesus, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. They said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up towards heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’ Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away. When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.

V/ The word of the Lord.

R/ Thanks be to God.

Comments

In the interlude between the ascension of Jesus and the coming of the Holy Spirit, Saint Luke shows the Apostles and other disciples, including Our Lady gathered in the Upper Room, the same room in which Christ had eaten the Last Supper with them before his passion. They have retired to Jerusalem after the ascension of their Master to fulfil his wish that they not leave Jerusalem without being fortified by the Holy Spirit that will come down on them soon.

This is the first passage which tells us of the spiritual life and devout practices of the disciples after the ascension. It puts emphasis on prayer, in keeping with the our Lord’s own practice and with his constant recommendation to his followers (Mt. 6:5). As Saint Jose Maria Escriva de Ballaguer, the founder of the Opus Dei Movement, tells us “Prayer is the foundation of the spiritual edifice. Prayer is all powerful” (The Way, 83). Prayer is the bedrock of the Church which will be made manifest with the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

There are three groups of people who form this apostolic assembly waiting in anticipation of the coming of the Holy Spirit. There are the eleven Apostles – they are now eleven with the defection of Judas, then the women from Galilee and Mary, the Mother of our Lord, and our Lord’s relatives. They form one community in prayer, which is the beginning of the Church under the leadership of the Apostles. The women from Galilee were the first to hear the message of the resurrection at the empty tomb, something the Apostles themselves did not witness. Then there is Mary, the first person ever to hear God’s message about Jesus Christ through the angel. Together, the Apostles, the women from Galilee and our Lord’s mother bring the Gospel in its entirety into the beginning of the Church. They are united in prayer as they wait the coming of the Holy Spirit.

What message can we take home from this passage? The first Christian community waits for the Holy Spirit together in prayer. This reading challenges us too to wait together around our Lord’s promise. The promise Jesus made to the first Christian community is the same promise he makes to us today because we gather together in Church to pray for the blessings of the Holy Spirit; the same Holy Spirit who came to that first Christian community over two thousand years ago. Saint Luke says of that first Christian community, “All these with one accord devoted themselves to prayer” (Acts 1: 14. As Saint Jose Maria Escriva puts it: “Prayer was then, as it is today, the only weapon, the most powerful means, for winning the battles of our interior struggle” (Friends of God, 242).

Let us too pray for the grace to make prayer the center of our Christian life for wherever two or three of us are gathered in his name, there in our midst our Lord is present (Mt 18:20). Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and enkindle in them the fire of your love. Amen. Alleluia.

Second Reading: 1 Peter 4: 13-16.

Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that is taking place among you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice in so far as you are sharing Christ’s sufferings, so that you may also be glad and shout for joy when his glory is revealed. If you are reviled for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the spirit of glory, which is the Spirit of God, is resting on you. Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that he may exalt you in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you. Discipline yourselves, keep alert. Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour. Resist him, steadfast in your faith, for you know that your brothers and sisters throughout the world are undergoing the same kinds of suffering. And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen.

V/ The word of the Lord.

R/ Thanks be to God.

Comments

Saint Peter, whose letter was addressed as encouragement to the persecuted churches of Asia, returns to the main theme of this last part, which is that Christians suffer unjust persecution simply because they are followers of Christ. But rather than being ashamed and considering it a burden, they should instead view such trials and tribulation with joy and thanksgiving. They should glorify God because if they share in Christ’s suffering, they will also share in his exaltation.

He encourages them to stand up boldly for their faith and the spirit of God will rest on them. The resurrection of Christ will flow into their own resurrection as well. Our Lord promised the special assistance of the Holy Spirit to persecuted Christians brought before the courts on account of their faith. “When they hand you over,” Matthew quotes Jesus as telling his disciples, “do not worry about what you are to speak or what you are to say. You will be given at that moment what you are to say. For it will not be you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you” (Mt 10: 19-20). Those who suffer on account of Christ, Peter tells his converts, will approach the judgment with greater confidence.

One of the lessons to take home from this reading is that we should never be ashamed of being called Christians; it should rather be a reason to give thanks to God. As Saint Jose Maria Escriva de Ballaguer, the founder of the Opus Dei says, “Christians who become cowed or inhibited or envious in the face of the licentious behaviour of those who have not accepted the Word of God, show that they have a very poor idea of the faith. If we truly keep the law of Christ – that is, if we make the effort to do so, because we will not always fully succeed – we will find ourselves endowed with a wonderful gallantry of spirit that does not need to look elsewhere to discover the full meaning of human dignity” (Friends of God, 38).

Let us therefore pray to the Holy Spirit to fortify our faith so that even in the face of persecution, we will always keep our gaze fixed on the risen Lord, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen. Alleluia.

Gospel: Alleluia! Alleluia! Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Alleluia! Alleluia! Let us now stand up and receive the Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Wonderful Counselor, Almighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace, according to John 17: 1-11.

Jesus looked up to heaven and said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son so that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all people, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed. ‘I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything you have given me is from you; for the words that you gave to me I have given to them, and they have received them and know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. I am asking on their behalf; I am not asking on behalf of the world, but on behalf of those whom you gave me, because they are yours. All mine are yours, and yours are mine; and I have been glorified in them. And now I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one, as we are one.’

V/ The Gospel of the Lord.

R/ Praise be to you, Lord Jesus Christ

Comments

Chapter 17 of John’s Gospel from where the reading of this day is taken has long been called the Priestly Prayer, in recognition that it is the address of Jesus to his Father, consecrating his sacrificial death to his Father. It resembles the Eucharistic prayer consecrating the sacred species at Mass. With this prayer our Lord also consecrates his disciples and the Church they form.

This prayer consists of three parts: in the first part (vv. 1-5), Jesus asks for the glorification of his holy human nature and the acceptance, by his Father, of his sacrifice on the cross. In the second part (vv. 6-19), he prays for this disciples, whom he is going to send out into the world to proclaim the redemption which he is now about to accomplish; and then in the third part (vv. 20-26), he prays for the unity among all those who will believe in him over the course of centuries, until they achieve full union with him in heaven.

The passage of our meditation comes from the initial verses of this prayer. In them, Jesus requests glorification from his Father because of the work he has accomplished. He has revealed the Father to those given to him and brought God’s saving work to completion. Jesus was sent to lead them to true understanding and love of the Father. Through his glorification, Christ gives man the opportunity to attain eternal life, to know God the Father and Jesus Christ, his only Son.

After praying for himself, our Lord now prays for his Apostles, who will continue his redemptive work on earth. In praying for them, he reveals some of the prerogatives of those whom he selects as his Apostles. They must first of all be chosen by God himself. It is after a night of prayer, the evangelists tell us, that Christ selects from among his disciples the Twelve at the head of which he places Peter (Mk 3:13-19; Mt 10: 1-42). These are people who have had the privilege of hearing God’s teaching from the mouth of Christ himself. They learn direct from him that he comes from the Father and is therefore the Father’s envoy among men. It is by acquiring knowledge of God through Sacred Scripture that the Christian too develops a personal relationship with God the Father and his Son, Jesus Christ.

He now asks his Father to give his disciples unity, perseverance, joy and holiness. Jesus continues to pray for us who believe that he was sent by the Father to save us. Let us therefore unite our prayer in this Eucharist to that of our Lord. We ask him to send his Holy Spirit to renew our faith so as to be able to keep our gaze permanently on Christ the risen Lord, who lives and reigns with the Father in the unity of the Holy Spirit one God forever and ever. Amen. Alleluia.